Lady Liberty

Chapter 13

"Everybody talks about the entitlement generation. There is no time I would rather live in than now. ...There's a tendency to live in a nostalgic state in this country, and think that other generations possessed an integrity and a tenacity better than the generation that is now. I wholeheartedly disagree with that, and I believe this is a group that will rise up to any challenge that comes before them, as well as any other generation in America would have done." -Jon Stewart

You can tell a lot about a nation by the way it treats its children.

America wished she had grasped that concept sooner.

The little ones were her most important investment, and yet, her biggest migraine as well. She had neglected them for far too long after the 2008 recession, forgetting how crucial they were to the stability of her institutions. Those fledgling beings with dreams stuffed in their pockets held the key to the future, and their advancement could not be curtailed.

She quickly convinced herself that hardly anything in the world could be as magical as the imagination and excitement vested in a child. During the days when fatigue and frustration caught up with her, she took short trips down to the local playground, watching the sprouting younglings of her citizens swing, run, shout, cheer, and shake with laughter. Who knew children had the capacity to be so simple and profound all at once?

They were still unaware, it seemed, that their lives would be riddled with hardship and misfortune.

It started with something as innocent as cuts in art programs and extracurricular activities. Financing such creative outlets became increasingly problematic, and thus, they vanished into the depths of history, leaving an emphasis on math, science, and computers in their place.

They snatched away fantasy and the enigmas of society to discipline the children to fit in a digital age where minds were numbed and the freedom to think was no longer tolerated. Their education became a business, their standards were lowered, and their validation was found in the form of uniform testing.

City tests, state tests, national tests, progress-tracking tests, and practice tests on how to take tests evolved into existence.

And when they were old enough to stop taking such tests, they'd be off to college, where they'd be met with crushing student-loan debt that would sit on their backs for decades of their fleeting lives.

America had failed them, and she knew it.

They would be the first generation to be worse-off than their parents. That is, if they were privileged enough to have the opportunity to move out and start their own families.

Poorly educated, burdened by debt, and fearful of the world at large, the impending days appeared bleak for millennials.

"Mommy! Look how high I can swing!"

"I see that, honey. Be careful."

"I am careful."

"Sometimes that isn't enough."

Although she had set them up for disappointment, there was still a sparkle of inspiration and clarity hanging over their heads.

That belief in better days came in the form of Barack Obama.

Charismatic and a breath of fresh air, he represented the young people-a demographic that had been forced into silence and exile for longer than they cared to recall. He showed them their voice and promised progressive reforms.